Jre
"Trade is the lifeblood of any nation; it brings new ideas, new goods, new friends. It brings prosperity for the entire Hive. War, on other end, is the death of any nation; it corrupts righteous morals, it brings starvation and need, and it creates bitter rivals. It is the end of the entire collective. And it is here, that we have our choice. Prosperity for the entire collective, or death? The answer should be obvious" -Great Jaws of the Great Emerald Hive, in their Debates of Commerce The Jre are one of the most populous species in the Commonwealth. They are known for their bussiness-saviness and general fondness of trade, in addition to their adversity to needless wars and similar. They are one of the founder-species of the Commonwealth. Biology "Let me make one thing clear 'bout Hoarders. They ain't ''that strong or anythin', 'least not compared to a bloody Flappy. But they're hard as hell to kill." -''Anonymous pirate in the Wild Moon Raiders, circumstances unkown The Jre have a water-carbon based biology, and breathe oxygen, like most known galactic species. They hail from the super-earth desert planet known as Jaron. Physical Description The Jre have a certain resemblance to the millipedes of Earth. Having a long body with an exoskeleton and many hundreds of small legs. Apart from this, every Jre has a set of four tentacles which they can use to manipulate their enviroment. Apart from this, the tentacles are also used to absorb scents and to release pheromones (used for communicating various emotions and simple concepts). They also have four, almost gelatinous eyes which are significantly worse than human eyes, though they do perceive the same colours. It is extremely important to note, however, that the Jre are a eusocial species divided into three main castes: Hunters, Workers and Fertilisers. Each of these castes plays a radically different role, biologically spekaing, and also looks rather different from their brethren. Hunters are the biggest of all Jre, being over 3 meters long. They, biologically speaking, are the 'soldiers' and 'hunters' of a Hive, going out to find food, killing any enemies of the collective and so forth. In order to accomplish this, they do not only posess the aforementioned size, but also a nutcracker-like beak which can easily break hard shells, exoskeletons and barks. Their tentacles are also longer than those of the other castes, useful for strangling or litterally crushing prey. They also have bigger and better eyes than the other two castes. Workers are smaller and stubbier than Hunters, coming in at 2.5 meters long. They possess a proboscis-like beak, which is used to apply a glue-like material they can naturally produce from their spit alongside a certain type of plant from their homeworld to create and hold together hives (this ability is, however, rarely used in the modern day). They have stronger and shorter tentacles than the other castes, which are used to haul heavy goods across often-times great distances. Fertilisers are the shortest one of all three Jre castes, being around 1.2 meters long. They have weak and short tentacles, which are only really useful to pick up food and eggs. They have a simpler, parrot-like beak with no other specific qualities. They have the smallest and weakest eyes of all castes. Fertilisers are generally the physically weakest of the three. All Jre also have an exoskeleton which is shed and then replaced regurarly in a process known as njeekkarner (litt. exoskeleton exhange). They also possess yellow blood, meat and organs. The Jre are somewhat strong compared to most other species, thanks to the high gravity they evolved in. Apart from this, they are also rather resilliant and quite hard to kill. They can take a relatively great amount of damage before succumbing to any wound, and can easily adapt to most enviroments (in part thanks to their eusocial nature, which makes cooperation easier and crime less likely). They do not have an as centralised nervous system as humans, whith many functions, sometimes even higher functions, being delegated to 'neural nodes'. A Jre can survive for a a bit less than half an hour without a head, for an example. Though they would be rather confused and frantic in this time period. Psychology and Behaviour The Jre are a eusocial species; they instinctevely see themselves as part of some collective. To the Jre, this 'collective' is an almost physical thing, and they only form a small, usually insignificant link in it. A sane Jre will conciously do something that harms the collective at large, most would rather commit suicide. The Jre will always do everything in their power to bring prosperity to the collective at large, no matter the cost. Even if individual Jre disagree with their collective, they would usually much rather just move away (provided doing so would not harm the collective) then to take up arms and fight. These 'migrants' will usually create their own hives of sorts, and after multiple generations they will usually feel entirely disconnected from the old collective. It is important to note that the Jre do not neccesarily see their Hive as their collective, though they usually see it as a part of it. A collective can be made up of multiple Hives, or even multiple 'nations'. Many modern Jre even see the Commonwealth as a whole as their collective, including its non-Jre members. When the Jre see their collective as being endangered, they enter something known as the 'Collective-survival response', where they will loose thr ability to feel many emotions (including most forms of empathy) and will only care about the survival of the collective. Once in this mode, Jre are known to do anything from selling all one's belongings and giving all the money to one's government, to full genocides. The phenomenon is extremely rare, and only occurs in life or death situations. It is also more collaquilly known as 'Hive Determination'. The Jre are also much less sensitive to burn-outs, stress or similar factors. In fact, they suffer from the opposite affliction, where not working enough causes them great psychological distress. Usually, this affliction, known as naktaannje (litt. Workless) causes a feeling akin to stress and great feeling of worthlessness. Though in some individuals, it has been observed to (also) cause feelings of irritation and even anger, at themselves or at the entire world. It is important to note that naktaannje can also be contracted if one perceives their work as not worthile, or useful enough to the collective. Due to the rise in automation, naktaannje has recently been becoming more and more prevalent in Jre societies, as there are less and less truly worthwile jobs to perform. Authorities both specificaly in the United Trade Committee and the Commonwealth at large have been looking into solutions for this. An other important aspect to Jre psychology is their natural obsession with collecting things. All Jre wish to collect 'notable' objects (what constitutes 'notable' depands on the individual), it is even required for their psychological health. All Jre also have a 'collection' of sorts, which they call a T'ajk. An object which they see as interesting is known as a taj'ret. A Jre that does not add any 'worthy' items to their t'ajk for a certain period of time (how long this is also depands on the individual) will start to feel worthless and depressed. This depression is known as T'ajjne (litt. t'ajless), and can lead to suicide or actual depression if left unnatended for too long. For as long as it is 'just' T'ajjne, however, the affliction can be simply cured by adding to one's t'ajk. Though it is important to note that, depanding on the person of the severity of the t'ajjne, it may take particularly notable objects to cure the affliction. It is also important to note that Jre can get rid of objects in their t'ajjne, especially so if they can replace it with an object they see as 'superior'. They will rarely throw objects that hold particular sentimental or monetary value away, however, and will usually cling on to those untill death. The Jre also have a quite different concept of beauty than most other sapients. They tend to see what is useful to the collective as 'beautiful'. As such, cattle, architecture, tools and weapons are often considered quite artistic. These things are often depicted in art (one of the main artforms of the Jre can essentially be described as miniature buildings), and the architecture, tools and weapons themselves are often further stylised for the sake of appearing more beautiful to them. They also have a concept known as T'ajt'orat (litt. Collectable Interest), which can be described as a second form of 'beauty'. This 'beauty' can only be found in items the Jre view as interesting to collect. These usually include, but are not limited to: shiny items, items in interesting shapes, all types of shells or exoskeletons, or anythign that comes in sets. T'ajt'orat is usually closer to other sapient's concept of 'beautiful' than what the Jre consider beautiful, though it is to be noted that it invokes quite different feelings in Jre. There are of course also differences between the psychologies of the different Jre castes: Hunters are known to absolutely hate monotony, and require variation and even a degree of excitement. They also handle stress and responsibility significantly better than the other castes, making them natural leaders. They don't suffer naktaannje from not doing work as quickly as other castes, though they do get it more quickly from doing work they see as unworthwile. They also develop T'ajjne much quiker than the other two castes, and usually have much larger collections. They are, by Jre standards, quite impulsive. They are, perhaps paradoxically, seen as the most expendable Jre, being commonly used as soldiers and similar. Workers, on the other hand, adore monotony, too much variation even being harmfull to them. They do not handle stress or too much responsibility very well, though they can work for extraordinarily long times without tiring. They develop naktaanje extremely quickly, but only barely suffer from T'ajjne. They are usually extremely deliberate in thought and slow to come to conclusions or decisions, and are as such often valued as advisors to actual leaders. It is considered inhumane to force Workers to not work. Fertilisers have a child-like intelligence, and mainly wish to play and teach larvae. They can only suffer from naktaannje if they do not see larvae for a long enough time, which causes them to seek out eggs to fertilise. They automatically bond to certain Workers who are entrusted with their protection, they will usually these Workers as 'heroes' of sorts and come to them for protection whenever they deem it neccesary. They do not need to look for T'ajrets, but do wish for regular new 'toys' and similar, preferably items that can be used to teach larvae certain skills. They are seen as extremely precious and important to the rest of hive, being the most important aspect of the collective's survival. They will usually be kept inside hive-structures for their entire life (which they do not mind, as they naturally fear the outside), and will always be the first ones to be evacuated or saved. Reproduction is also viewed differently by the Jre than by most other sapients. They do not have any concept of sexual pleasure at all, instead seeing reproduction as purely being a thing that makes the number of 'human' resources in a hive grow. They will therefore allocate a certain amount of resources to reproduction, and will exactly determine how many new Jre, and of what castes they need. Also of note are Jre Hives. A Hive can both be the concept of a 'hive', which can be considered roughly analogous to a mix of a human family (albeit, a really large one), a city (or sometimes even a nation) and a private corporation. Hives are the forefront of all Jre society, and every hive even has minor genetical differences from one an other; the members of one Hive may have a red exoskeleton, whilst an other may possess a brown or yellow colour, for an example. Hives are also, however, the buildings in which Jre live. These are usually specifically known as Hive-Towers, and are somewhat of a combination of a house and a factory. As Jre need significantly less personal place than other sapients, they tend to have communal living areas, extraordinarly small hallways, and similar attributes. The Jre also feel most at home in houses with rather specific internal designs of rooms and hallways, that are similar to the Hives they used to build in their equivalent of the stone-age. Similarly, they tend to prefer almost spiral buildings, round rooms and hallways, and walls that appear covered with all kinds of random objects. The Jre are, compared to other sapient species, a very instinct-driven race. Though they can be described as extremely resilient and adaptable to hostile enviroments, they will also always react in similar ways to similar situations. This has often been used against them, as they, as a group, are easy to manipulate. This is especialyl the case for individual Jre, or smaller groups. Larger groups tend to have more insights, and tend to be somewhat more flexible. Adult Jre can also be slow to learn new skills. Reproduction and Lifecycle As stated before, Jre lay eggs which are fertilised outside of the body. These eggs do not possess a hard shell, and are instead more or less slimy yellow balls where an embryo grows in. They also develop significantly better in warmth than in cold, with colder temperatures often leading to deformities. This can be considered one of the only 'weaknesses' of the otherwise extremely adaptable Jre species, and limits their range of colonisable planets to hotter worlds. The eggs are layed by Workers, who drop them off in specialised rooms for non-fertilised eggs. Fertilisers will fertilise these eggs, after they which they will start to change colour from green to yellow as the embryo grows. The eggs will then be moved again to an other specialised area, in older times this was a room higher up in the hive with much decaying plant life being dropped on the ground to produce more heat. The caste of the larvae is determined by how much heat they receive, and as such the Jre will usually have multiple hatcheries, one for each caste. Nowadays, specialised heat lamps are used for the procedure. The Jre will usually predict exactly how many eggs they require for their collective to survive and prosper, any extra eggs are not fertilised and usually used for consumption. The eggs will usually hatch after about 10 earth months. Jre larvae appear much like their adult counterparts, though significantly smaller (usually about 13 cm long). They will also have a more round head, with their eyes being placed more central on the head than with adult Jre. They have no true tentacles at this point, with all legs instead being equally sized and the only difference between a 'leg' and a 'tentacle' at this point being that what will become a tentacle does have the beginnings of an olfactory organ and the beginnings of glands that can produce pheromones. Though it is worth mentioning that Jre larvae have no sense of smell, nor the ability to produce pheromones. They also do not posess a proper beak at this point, instead having a soft organ that vaguely resembles one. Finally, they have no true exoskeleton, instead having a soft white skin, at first (usually covered in the 'shell' of their eggs, for an at least minimal protection) which grows harder and changes colour as they mature. After hatching, the larvae will be moved to an other specialised set of rooms inside a Hive, where they will be educated both by Fertilisers and, depanding on their caste, by a group of Hunters or Workers. Though initially being less intelligent than even human babies, they develop extremely quickly and will reach the next stage of their development relatively quickly after only around half an Earth year. In this stage, which can be equated to a toddler or even a 6-12 year old of sorts, they will have something resembling an exoskeleton (though an extremely soft one), and are beginning to develop scent and pheromone glands. They will also have an extremely quickly developing mind, being able to learn a great many things in a relatively short amount of time. It is in this stage of their lives that the Jre will learn things like reading, maths, speach, and even basic work skills (specifics depanding on what the collective predicts they need at the time). After about 3 Earth years, this stage comes to an end, and the next stage which can be roughly equated to puberty begins. Now the Jre's brain development slows down to a certain extend, though certain specific parts of it accelerate. It is in this stage that a Jre youngling develops more complicated emotions (and the ability to even feel certain emotions, like sadness and grief) in addition to morals. Similarly, it is here that any Jre starts to connect to their collective. This feeling of 'connection' cannot be lost in any lifetime, and what a Jre will come to see as their collective in this third stage will be what they see as their collective for life. Other parties can 'join' this collective in their eyes, though it'd be more accurate to say that they become 'linked' to it without actually fully joining it. The Jre at this point will look like a smaller adult Jre, with a somewhat bleakly coloured and softer exoskeleton. In most societies, it is at this stage that they are consistently allowed outside their Hive (assuming they are not a Fertiliser) and will do their first actual work experience. They will also learn more specific and detailed skills now. After 2 earth years, at the age of 5, the Jre can be considered an adult. They will have a normal, fully developed exoskeleton at this point alongside fully developed tentacles, scent, and pheromone glands. Brain development also largely stops at this age, with adult Jre having a somewhat more difficult time to learn new skills or to accept new morals (though it is still possible). They will also start regurarly shedding their exoskeleton now, intitially once every year, though this slows down over time. Initially, they will be relatively small compared to older Jre, but as Jre never stop growing in their life this will soon be remedied. Their growth will also eventually slow down immensely, however. From the age of about 26, Jre will start to slowly get worse. From this age onwards, the process of njeekkarner, in which the exoskeleton is shed and replaced, begins to slow down exponentially. As a result, healing will also become increasingly slower, and wounds that would have normally taken a relatively short time to heal can take years to heal. In addition, various bodily functions will start getting worse and worse; including but limited to: eyesight, scent, pheromone production, memory and coordination. The nervous system in general will also start to break down. It is also not uncommon for older Jre to develop a sickness known as artjekti'rko' (litt. impossible to control legs), where connection between the various nervous 'nodes' breaks down to the point that it becomes hard to control one's limbs. In certain extreme cases, this can even lead to the limbs becoming completely independant of the actual Jre, and getting a life of their own. A not entirely dessimilar disease called Tre'ra'rjeyt (Tre'ra' Disease, a Tre'ra' being a species which are to the Jre similar to what chimpanzees are to humans) also exists, where all the higher brain functions of a Jre 'rot' away, leaving only basic instincts. Suffers of this disease will usually attempt to still perform tasks for the Hive, but will usually be incapable of doing so. Most societies see it as inhumane to allow patients of the affliction to continue working, and they will usually be euthanised. Most Jre, even in ancient societies, would usually live up to the age of 33-35. Modern life extension technology allows them to reach ages upwards to 40-45, which is seen as incredibly old in their society. The oldest Jre will usually be quite large and have a completely black to grey exoskeleton. Evolutionary Development "It appears that, in the Jre, sapience and a 'hive-intelligence' evolved at exactly the same pace. They originally thought any non-eusocial sapient species, let alone a spacearing one, a simply ludicrous concept- after all, how could any animal become sapient without any guidance from a group instinct, without it just leading to infighting and extinction?" -Mboshroni Xenohistorian N'shbak Mko Chtom in his book 'The Contact Wars: The How, Where and Why' The Jre evolved on the deserts of inner Jre'ma, the one supercontinent of their homeworld of Jaron. They are a part of a larger order on Jaron, known as Rko'nkj (litt.many leg) which evolved to live on land seperately from all other land-animals on Jaron, and can mainly be recognised by their abnormally large amount of legs and often millipede-like body plan. Rko'nkj are a somewhat succesful group of animals on Jaron, being found all across Jre'ma in many niches. Whilst most Rko'nkj live in the more tropical coasts of Jre'ma, or have even evolved to return to the sea similar to dolphins and the like on Earth, some have also taken to live in the inner deserts of the continent or the inbetween grasslands. The Rko'nkj that evolved to live in the deserts of the planet quickly split into two groups: the Jre'rjeen (litt. Lonesome Jre), who evolved to be somewhat dangerous solo-predators, and the Artjankyaj'aktjok (litt. Our Group) who evolved to be increasingly social, eventually leading to eusocial species. Artjankyaj'aktjok can be further divided into two groups: Lower, who are only somewhat intelligence and hunt in small groups, and Higher, who are eusocial and usually quite intelligent. It can thusly be said that as Artjankyaj'aktjok evolved to be more and more social and cooperated, they also developed more coordinated hunting strategies and social structures. The first evidence of proto-tentacles in Artjankyaj'aktjok can be found in a Lower species known as Jktijjen (Jak'ran for Hard Tentacle), whose four frontal legs evolved to be increasingly long, likely in order to be able to grasp on prey better, some 67 million years ago. It is therefore believed that the Jkitjjen is the ancestor to all Higher Artjankyaj'aktjok. The first evidence of true tentacles is found in the Higher species of Arjmijjen (Jak'ran for First Tentacle) some 54 million years ago. It is suspected that the Jre's pheromone glands and olfactory organs developed some 5 million years later, though it is near impossible to pinpoint what species may have been the first to develop this. Originally, most Higher Artjankyaj'aktjok simply murrowed large-ish nests in the qand, usually near oasis'. However, at a currently unkown point some species developed to build signficantly larger Hives that also greatly expand above the surface, being somewhat similar to termite hills in that respect. It is suspected that the Jre's collection instinct developed a few million years before, and was originaly mainly used as wall-reinforcements to keep underground tunnels from caving. The first true Hives were likely also build from a mixture of dirt, Worker-adhesive and various 'collectables' (mainly shells, exoskeletons and some stones). They were usually found near rivers,oasis, and underground water reservoirs. At around the same time Hives started emerging, the first castes also developed. The first species with evidence of castes is known as Tktrkaj (Jak'ran for Casted). Most likely, castes developed as societal structures became increasingly more complex, Hives became increasingly bigger (both in the size of the actual burrows, and in population) and hunting territories also became bigger. Hunter- en Worker-equivalents appear to be the first castes to have evolved, as the species needed more food and defense, but also required a steady supply of builders and similar. Fertilisers likely evolved a few million years later, as Hives could afford to spend more resources just into growing. Over the next few million years, Castes would grow more specialised and refined, with increasingly more 'specific tools' at their disposal, such as specialised beaks and similar. Originally Fertilisers had the potential to grow into so-called 'Founders', bigger, stronger and more intelligent Fertilisers that would traverse deserts on their own in order to meet up with Workers from other Hives and found new Hives. This ensured the survival of the entire species. This 'metamorphosis' was unlocked by feeding them more food than usual as larvae, similar to how Queens are 'created' in bee hives. Modern Fertilisers still have the potential to grow into Founders, but it is significantly harder and is seen as barbaric by most modern cultures. Moss, rise to sapience